Kompleks Bukit Jambul although built in 1997 is still a household name in the Northern Region with a total built-up of 1.1 million sq ft. The 6 storey complex features 413 shops with MyDin Hypermarket, COURTS, KAMDAR and few more being the anchor tenants. Furthermore the complex is renowned for its affordable prices and the availability of the latest wide range of Computers and Mobile phone technology with its accessories and also the trendiest boutiques in the market. With the increasing foot traffic nowadays, each tenant is enjoying a very brisk business at KBJ.

In line with our expansion and rapid business growth in the market, we would like to invite high motivated individual for the postions of :

A new liberal arts institution is in the pipeline at Balik Pulau covering 40ha of land.

According to the Chief Minister, the federal and state governments are collaborating to facilitate the project, which is backed by Smith College, a private independent women's liberal arts college in Massachusetts, United States.

GEORGE TOWN (July 5, 2012): The state government today revealed that the plan for a liberal arts institution in the up and coming Balik Pulau township was a federal government project.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the Asian Women Leadership University (AWLU) was an Entry Point Project (ETP) under the EducationNational Key Economic Areas (NKEA).

He made the revelation following protests by land owners over the acquisition of their land in Bukit Genting on Wednesday as well as criticism that the state was taking away their land.

Citing a letter dated June 12, 2012, from Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Senator Datuk Seri Idris Jala, Lim said the AWLU project was one of 21 new ETPs to transform Malaysia into a high income country.

He quoted the letter saying that the project was expected to bring in RM492 million worth of investments as well as creating 190 new high value jobs.

He said the state government has been requested to assist in transferring 40.46ha of land to the AWLU Malaysian Foundation.

"We believe the project will contribute in a significant way to transforming tertiary education in Malaysia as well as realise the plans for Malaysia as an education hub offering varied educational choices in the region," he read from the letter.

Lim also moved to soothe fears over compensation saying that the state will abide by the valuations set by the Malaysian Valuation and Property Services Department under the Finance Ministry.

He said land owners unhappy with the compensation offer could also take to the matter to court.

"The state sympathises with the land owners and we will try our best to help them out," he said while expressing that it was a hard decision to make but was made in the interests of education.

In addition, Lim said there had been an amicable dialogue with about 40 land owners on Tuesday and they understood that the land was to be used for a public project and not for private gain.

"Hopefully this matter will not be turned into a racial issue or be politicised as it is a collaboration between the state and the federal government," he said.

It is envisaged that the annual tuition fee (for a four-year degree programme leading to a BA degree) will be US$15,000-US$20,000 per year. Scholarships will be provided for deserving students.

Our recent trip to Penang was to feast on durians, this being the season for it, and to spring clean my apartment. I had engaged two cleaners to mop and help me clear some of the unwanted items. The last time the apartment was cleaned was two years ago. The floor was thick with dust, as was everything else. The five hours of cleaning resulted in ten garbage bagful of things that I no longer have any use for. The next trip will be for packing the remaining items in boxes.

The day after the spring cleaning, we headed to Balik Pulau. I had pre-ordered three durians for Wuan and myself from Ah Wong of Stall 808 which is across the road from the Balik Pulau bus terminal and market. Ah Wong is my cousin Peter's cousin. He is a durian wholesaler that we have been patronising for many years. His wife also makes the delicious lempuk durian which is a paste of durian and sugar stirred in a kuali over a slow fire for at least four hours until it thickens and turns a dark shade of brown.

When we arrived at Ah Wong's house which also doubles up as his durian stall, we had to wait for him for almost half an hour. He was at the plantation collecting durians to transport them back to the stall. The first durian we had came fresh from the plantation. It is called "hor lor" in Hokkien which means bottle gourd because of the shape of its pulp. Its flesh is firm and pleasantly sweet with a subtle hint of bitterness.

The second fruit we had was called "ang chui mua" or red sarung. I have no idea why it is named as such. Perhaps the original tree was used to hang red sarungs to dry. Wuan and I have never eaten this fruit before. The flesh is a bright orange and slightly soft. Some of the seeds are stunted and small (chew hoot). It is sweet with a strong taste of bitterness. The core of the fruit is enlarged (tua sim) which made it difficult to open.

While we were enjoying the two durians, Ah Wong went off to collect more durians from the plantation. When we were done, and waiting for him, Wuan went over to the pile of durians to pick one of the smaller fruits to practice shaking the durian. The sound and sensation of the pulp moving inside while it is being shaken indicates that its flesh is firm. If there is no sound when shaken, the flesh could be mushed. Firm flesh is preferred over mushed ones.

When Ah Wong came back, he asked what kind of durian we wanted to eat next. Wuan wanted something creamy and bitter. Incidentally, the durian that she used to practice shaking with had bitter and creamy flesh. The durian was called "hor too" or porcupine. Again, I have no idea why it is named after a porcupine. Perhaps its shape has a likeness to a porcupine or the animal was spotted frequently near the tree before it was given a name.

Its flesh was pale, not an attractive feature in durians. The preferred colours are bright yellow, orange and pinkish. However, to our surprise, it was creamy and very sticky. It was moderately sweet but had a very bitter taste with a strong aftertaste of licorice. That was also the first time we had "hor too" and we liked it very much, irrespective of the colour of its flesh. Its unique licorice aftertaste was very unusual. That was one durian we would not mind having more of.

With some room in our tummies still, we got Ah Wong to open another durian for us. He recommended "cheh puay" or green skin. This is one fruit we have been eating here for the past few years. Its flesh was a shade of bright yellow, very creamy, sweet, rich and sticky. I had to wash it down with some water after my second mouthful because of its stickiness. Needless to say, this is one of our favourites too.

The durian harvest for this year is rather small. The continuous rain during the blooming phase had caused many of the buds to fall off. In a week or two, the durian season in Balik Pulau would end. The quality of the durians at the tailend is usually lower. It was fortunate that we were in Penang at the peak of the season. We had a pick of some of the better durians. Finally, our craving for durians for this year was totally satiated.

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As durian season is upon us again, I thought I should update the blog and maybe tell you a bit more about myself!

Name: X, semi-anonymous Balik Pulau bloggerLocation: Singapore (for now). My family is from Balik Pulau, but I only visit once a year or less, because of my schedule :(Languages I speak: English, Chinese...some Korean...und ein bisschen Deutsch...Questions? Email me using the link on the right sidebar!

So what's been going on in Balik Pulau?

Traffic accidents. And more traffic accidents. Anyone who's been there will know that the curving mountain roads are really treacherous, and that road works have been delayed year after year after year. However, I think the last time I visited, a bridge was under construction. It's really unfortunate that the government has been so slow about improving the safety conditions of the roads.

Urbanisation and development. People are building huge houses in a place that used to be a village of aluminium and wood houses 70 years ago, causing landslides and pollution.

3rd Penang Durians Masters, 16-17 June 2012. I'm not too sure what this event is. Is it a bowling competition? Are the bowlers using durians to bowl instead of regular bowling balls? (I kid.)

So where should you stay while you're stuffing your faces with smelly durians? I recommend the Upeh Inn. Warning to the picky: this is a shabby inn by many standards. The toilets are shared, there are only a few (4-5) rooms, there are two showers only, with cold water only. It is on the 2nd floor of a row of shophouses, and there are no elevators, so you have to drag your own luggage up to your room. Don't count on there being any air-conditioning. No food or drinks are provided in the Inn. However, it is very clean and cool at night, and across the road there is a market that sells basic Malaysian staple meals every morning. Every weekend there is a night market that sells all manner of food (very exciting) and even some shoes and clothes (not so exciting). There is a bus stop right outside the inn with buses that go to Georgetown. I don't know if the owner speaks English, but you can try contacting them at:

What does "Islamic Inn" mean? Basically not much, just that anything shady that Muslims would frown upon does not happen in the inn, so it is relatively safe. Families who are visiting relatives and cyclists who are touring Penang by bike book rooms there.

As I have told you before, Saturday and Sunday is supposed to be my rest day . However, this Sunday which is today was very busy for me.

It started of with a breakfast with my s family and my nephew , B and my Sister C. We had a Tim Sum breakfast at Kuta Bali, Farlim and during the cversation, we happen to talk about the housing properties in Balik Pul

au. My daughter , M's boyfriend wsa from Balik Pulau. The direct translation of " balik pulau " is going back to the Island. But, the place is not an island but it is across a hill separating the town and Air Itam town from the place. It took about 15 minutes to cross the hill from Farlim, Air Itam.

Balik Pulau is very famous for its durian estates and some of the best durians come from this place. Many outstation visitors visit this place for a few delicacies ie durian, laksa and nutmeg juice.

After the Tim Sum breakfast, we decide to take a break before we go over to Balik Pulau and upon reaching my home, I was requested by my wife to shop for some household items at the nearby Sunshine hypermarket. It was a rush for me because I was supposed to pick up my daughter, M , my nephew and my sister to go property hunting in Balik Pulau. It took me an hour to finish shopping with my wife and I have to rush to pick up all the members and to on my way to Balik Pulau.

We started off at about 11.45am and it was getting hot. The weather in the morning was cloudy and it starts to get hot as noon approaches. It took about 20 minutes before we reach Balik Pulau and there was a lot of cars heading for that direction as the durian season has just started. Durian stalls were mushrooming all along the hill way to Balik Pulau. The town was full of cars but we took the left turn heading towards a property at Pokok Upeh.

We reach a property site which have about 23 bungalows and each selling about RM1.4 million with about 6,000 to 7,000 sq ft of land. The show units was beautifully done and there was ample space in the living room and all in there are about 6 rooms. If we were to buy such landed property in E&O and the Lights or Pulau TIkus, it will cost about RM6 million. Although, Balik Pulau and Pulau Tikus have the same "Pulau" name , the price is so vastly different. The difference is across the hill between two places. I think in a matter of time, the hill would not matter anymore if the land is getting less in the Penang town area.

Next, we visited Botanical. This is a new township located on a low hill and the place was better oganized and there is about a few hundred semi-D or terrace houses there. There is also an international school which is called the Prince of Wales International School. It was a very beautiful building and the township is like a modern western housing sites. The area is booming and the pace of expanding the property have slowed down. This was the first property site to launched in Balik Pulau. The units are a little pricey , ranging between RM600,000 to RM900,000 per unit depenidng on whether it is a terrace unit or semi-D unit. The price of these properties have increased since my last visit by about 40%.

The next site was a landed property site near the sea. It should take another 10 minutes to the seas. In this property , they provide a man-make river and the property have a mix of single stuble orey semi-Ds , double storey terrace houses, bungalows ranging between RM350,000 for a single storey terrace to RM700,000 for a double storey semi-D. I think the place is mend to be a santuary type of living style. It is a very big piece of development but it will take a few years to complete.

There is so many new property sites in Balik Pulau and compare to the property in the island proper , it is more affordable for many before the price of the land catches up with the Island proper. Penang is an island so land is limited and it will stretch further and further into the island as the coast and the island proper gets more and more staturated.

After the property tour, my daughter M's BF took us to have lunch at the new market place where we had laksa, persumbor , nutmeg juice and ice kachang. The laksa was quite good and my Sister , C loved it very much. Maybe, it is because she is hungry. LOL.

So, we rushed off back to Farlim and it was already 4pm in the afternoon. I took a short nap and when I wake up, it is already dinner time. The rest of the day was the usual resting on the couch and watching my favorite Sunday movie. Yeah, back to normal and prepare for the next working day on Monday.

Pulau Betong fish market. Sometimes a lot of fish, sometimes no fish eventhough at the same time same day. I myself am not too sure how to know if it's a good day. Anyhow the 3 photos below were taken on a good day with lotsa fresh seafood and the gigantic stingray.

If you're coming out from Palmyra, at the traffic light, turn right towards Pulau Betong (left is towards Sunday pasar malam). Go until almost the end and you will see an old faded signboard "Pasar Nelayan Pulau Betong"

We just discovered there's a huge Thai food restaurant at the Anjung Indah peak (the view point at Jln Tun Sardon). We went on a weekday so there was only 2 tables. The food is so-so only, but the view is good and the price, you judge for yourself. I still prefer Khun Thai, good food, ok prixce.

And lastly, the Sunday Pasar Tani. It doesn't have the greatest fresh produces but at least it's some type of activity in the sleepy town.

Now I still have problem looking for decent breakfast venue which can meet the FTZ food standard.

As durian season is upon us again, I thought I should update the blog and maybe tell you a bit more about myself!

Name: X, semi-anonymous Balik Pulau bloggerLocation: Singapore (for now). My family is from Balik Pulau, but I only visit once a year or less, because of my schedule :(Languages I speak: English, Chinese...some Korean...und ein bisschen Deutsch...Questions? Email me using the link on the right sidebar!

So what's been going on in Balik Pulau?

Traffic accidents. And more traffic accidents. Anyone who's been there will know that the curving mountain roads are really treacherous, and that road works have been delayed year after year after year. However, I think the last time I visited, a bridge was under construction. It's really unfortunate that the government has been so slow about improving the safety conditions of the roads.

Urbanisation and development. People are building huge houses in a place that used to be a village of aluminium and wood houses 70 years ago, causing landslides and pollution.

3rd Penang Durians Masters, 16-17 June 2012. I'm not too sure what this event is. Is it a bowling competition? Are the bowlers using durians to bowl instead of regular bowling balls? (I kid.)

So where should you stay while you're stuffing your faces with smelly durians? I recommend the Upeh Inn. Warning to the picky: this is a shabby inn by many standards. The toilets are shared, there are only a few (4-5) rooms, there are two showers only, with cold water only. It is on the 2nd floor of a row of shophouses, and there are no elevators, so you have to drag your own luggage up to your room. Don't count on there being any air-conditioning. No food or drinks are provided in the Inn. However, it is very clean and cool at night, and across the road there is a market that sells basic Malaysian staple meals every morning. Every weekend there is a night market that sells all manner of food (very exciting) and even some shoes and clothes (not so exciting). There is a bus stop right outside the inn with buses that go to Georgetown. I don't know if the owner speaks English, but you can try contacting them at:

What does "Islamic Inn" mean? Basically not much, just that anything shady that Muslims would frown upon does not happen in the inn, so it is relatively safe. Families who are visiting relatives and cyclists who are touring Penang by bike book rooms there.

[unable to retrieve full-text content]THE Balik Pulau Art Society aims to establish Balik Pulau in Penang as an art village with the upcoming Balik Pulau Art Festival on July 13. The three-day festival, which ends on July 15, aims to promote interaction among the ...